The Adventures Of Bette Porter And Sissee Garner Schmidt After Tina (Part 2, Chapter 14)

PART TWO:  MAUI

Chapter 14

There were no tourists around the church grounds, no other cars were visible so it seemed like a very private place for Bette and I as we walked on a path to the front door of the church. Our arms touched and she reached for my hand and held it tightly. It was a small thing but I felt her love and support and I hope she did too, as I squeezed her hand back.

There was a single, plain, whitewashed door at the entrance of the church. When we went in, everything on the interior was white also, as if to signify purity. There were several rows of rustic pews, juxtaposed by a second row. We walked down the center aisle and sat down in a front pew, looking at the austere altar which was a long table covered with a white cloth over which was a plain, brown wooden cross, about two-feet high.

This is the first time I’ve been in a church in a long time,” I whispered.

“Me too, except for the silent retreat I went to.”

“I thought that was more of a philosophy than a religion.”

“Whatever you want to call it, I was just looking for peace and harmony in my life and being silent seemed like a wonderful way to do it.”

“But you couldn’t wait to break that silence.”

“It was intimidating; the constant quiet. It drove me up a wall.”

“Okay, after all is said and done, after you’ve had time to think about it do you think it helped you at all?’

“I liked the yoga. I’ve been doing that for years but I learned to concentrate more, by connecting the mental part of it with the physical part.” She was speaking quietly too. “Meditation helps at times but I was seeking spiritual growth and I’m not so sure I achieved that, especially since I bailed out, walked away and went screaming down a country road just to hear the sound of my own voice.”

“You lasted longer than I would have.”